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    --> The Official BAREBONER's Lounge <---

    Discussion in 'MSI Reviews & Owners' Lounges' started by eelkered, Mar 11, 2012.

  1. Donald@Paladin44

    Donald@Paladin44 Retired

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    Same screens, just different mumbo jumbo.
     
  2. ostent

    ostent Newbie

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    I don't know how you guys do it but you're the cheapest site out there, now the only question is whether or not I should get a 680m on the msi barebones or 670m sli on the sager np9370. I can't find a website that compares the two, in face I can't find a site that reviews 670sli at all, at least not with 3GB of Vram.
     
  3. Meaker@Sager

    Meaker@Sager Company Representative

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    670SLI would be similar to 560 (non ti) sli in a desktop but a bit slower I guess.

    Regardless guys, I think i will be going with a power pro 11-36 680 (16F3) as my next project, equipped with the following:

    MSI 16F3 barebone with unlocked bios.
    3940XM
    Gtx680m 4gb
    8gb ddr3 2133mhz hyper-x sodimm
    2x256gb crucial m4 ssd
    Dvd-rw + external Bluray
    1920x1080 matte display
    Custom modified 230w delta power brick

    I should hopefully be able to get some decent scores out of it :)
     
  4. ostent

    ostent Newbie

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    Just ordered my 19fs from Power Notebooks

    1 PowerPro R 12:17-680 Gaming Laptops - $1,657.00
    17.3" Full HD (1920x1080) MATTE LED backlit LCD
    nVIDIA GeForce GTX 680M 256bit w/4.0GB GDDR5
    Intel Core i7-3610QM (2.3~3.3GHz) w/6M L3 Cache - 4 Cores - 8 Threads
    FREE IC Diamond Thermal Compound applied to CPU + GPU
    16GB (4x 4GB) DDR3/1600 Dual Channel Memory - SALE! $30 OFF
    500GB SATA II 3GB/s 7,200 RPM Hard Drive
    2nd HDD - None - 2nd HDD Bracket is Included
    RAID Disabled
    Combo Dual Layer SuperMulti DVDRW/CDRW Drive
    Built-in Bigfoot Networks Killer Wireless-N 1202 - Ultimate Gaming Card + Bluetooth 4.0 (Dual Band)

    I also ordered a 256 GB 830 form Amazon and windows 8 as well (they were 50% off) Can't wait for it arrive!

    Anyone have any tips on installing an SSD? I don't want to short circuit the laptop or void my warranty
     
  5. SoundOf1HandClapping

    SoundOf1HandClapping Was once a Forge

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    I'll be leaving the GE60 club and becoming a bareboner myself tomorrow.

    Bareboner.

    Why does that make me giggle.



    Also, my new signature is in honor of this milestone.
     
  6. miichael

    miichael Notebook Consultant

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    gonna be a long month before I order mine..I can not wait...
     
  7. johnmr531

    johnmr531 Notebook Consultant

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  8. Meaker@Sager

    Meaker@Sager Company Representative

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    [​IMG]

    Just arrived and I have a dell 240w slim brick on the way :) ah it starts to come together.
     
  9. pau1ow

    pau1ow Notebook Deity

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    This Dell brick is really goood - make sure you got a Delta rather than Flextronics - I've been told they are better.
     
  10. Meaker@Sager

    Meaker@Sager Company Representative

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    I think its flex that im getting but its just my travel brick, my delta 230w will do the heavy lifting at home.
     
  11. 5482741

    5482741 5482741

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    Just got a 3920XM; which may have given me extra options in XTU:
    [​IMG]


    Not that it really matters with the unlocked BIOS.
     
  12. pau1ow

    pau1ow Notebook Deity

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    Did you bench it yet ?

    With my 3720XM, I could only get up to 4ghz @ 4 cores (and 1 core) because there was no voltage increase option :( On the other hand, since the voltage was low, it was getting barely hot.

    jaug1337 got it now - I'd be interested to see the temps difference between yours and his since heat is directly related to the voltage - voltage of 3720xm was only 1.18v @ full load if I recall - shown in Throttlestop (VID).
     
  13. jaug1337

    jaug1337 de_dust2

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    We could bench and see :p

    The 3720XM is hella strong.
     
  14. Meaker@Sager

    Meaker@Sager Company Representative

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    It will be interesting to see how far the 3940xm will go.

    Also I wonder how much base clock I will get when running 2133mhz ram.
     
  15. 5482741

    5482741 5482741

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    So far, I get 8.16 in Cinebench 11.5 at ~4.2GHz.

    [​IMG]


    I think 5.91 was the highest I got with my 2920XM ES.
     
  16. Meaker@Sager

    Meaker@Sager Company Representative

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    What bios are you using 5482741?
     
  17. 5482741

    5482741 5482741

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    E16F3IG6.30P

    It's probably not the latest.
     
  18. matsjc

    matsjc Notebook Guru

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    Hi I am having issues with the MSI 16F3 I received earlier. I did a clean install and installed all the drivers from the cd and didn't detect any issues. I then restarted and proceed to install the nvidia driver. After installation I got excited and went straight to playing swtor and I manage to play it smoothly at max settings and detected no issues at all. temperatures are within limits (cpu and gpu are in low 70s.)

    After that i then installed battle field 3 then restarted the laptop after fully installing it. Once the laptop booted back to windows I tried accessing the nvidia control manager at the system tray I got an error saying that there is no nvidia graphics card and the program needs to be closed. I then uninstalled the nvidia drivers and i tried reinstalling them and im getting an error msg saying "This graphics driver could not find compatible graphics hardware." I tried reformating the laptop then install the drivers and I am still getting the same error. Please help! :(
     
  19. Meaker@Sager

    Meaker@Sager Company Representative

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    Is it an unlocked version? Has any one tried flashing a gt60 bios?

    If yours is unlocked can you share it as they are hard to find.
     
  20. 5482741

    5482741 5482741

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  21. DarkoL

    DarkoL Notebook Consultant

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    Hey guys!

    I'm ordering a 16F3 from PowerNotebooks in a day or two, but I have a couple of things that worry me. It's basically the temperatures that worries me the most because it gets very hot in summer where I live (40 - 45ºC) and I fear that might affect the laptop's temperature.

    Also, I noticed that the PSU is extremely enormous. Is there any sort of replacement that I can use? I've found this: Targus Home/Office 180W AC Power Laptop Charger | APA05US which should be compatible, but I read somewhere that the + and - in the tip are flipped and thus I will need to switch them and resolder the tip. Anybody had an experience with that?
     
  22. Meaker@Sager

    Meaker@Sager Company Representative

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    Im going to be soldering in the right cable (5.5mm*2.5mm) into a slim 240w dell brick.

    The cooling in this notebook is as good as any so just keep it to the shade if you can.
     
  23. DarkoL

    DarkoL Notebook Consultant

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    Isn't 240w too much? I found a similar one but 180w instead: Amazon.com: Dell Original Slim 19.5V 9.23A 180W Replacement AC Adapter for Dell Notebook Model: Dell Precision M4600, M6300, M6400,. Wouldn't that be sufficient?

    And honestly, I have absolutely no context about the whole cable replacing thing so I'll probably stick with the huge brick for a while. But I'm curious, do you use the original brick's connector or do you find a matching one elsewhere?
     
  24. Meaker@Sager

    Meaker@Sager Company Representative

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    I got a matching one.

    There is no such thing as too much maximum power for your brick, so long as the voltage is close (19.5V here where the original is 19V) then the power needs to be the same or greater.

    In this case you need more than 180W when you start ocing the CPU + GPU.
     
  25. DarkoL

    DarkoL Notebook Consultant

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  26. Meaker@Sager

    Meaker@Sager Company Representative

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    That's what I am doing, I am just waiting on the correct cable, all work is done internally so apart from maybe a slight mis-fit on the rubber stop that keeps the cord in (corrected with electrical tape) it should look pretty professional.

    [​IMG]

    Well that's my travel adaptor done.
     
  27. DarkoL

    DarkoL Notebook Consultant

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    Looks pretty neat! I'll see what I can do once I get the laptop itself :)
     
  28. Meaker@Sager

    Meaker@Sager Company Representative

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    Could someone do me a favour? Any 16F3 user running their stock bios could you use the tool on this post to backup your bios before flashing another?

    MSI G-Series Unlocked BIOS - Page 11

    Either post it up here or send it to me (make sure you don't have a password set in the bios).
     
  29. stadler5

    stadler5 Notebook Guru

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  30. 5482741

    5482741 5482741

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  31. Meaker@Sager

    Meaker@Sager Company Representative

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    Thanks for the files, seems only the original 16f3 bios has a chipset menu.

    The system is running well with a gt60 bios and the anti throttle firmware, im just working on getting the clocks up to par.
     
  32. 5482741

    5482741 5482741

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    Which BIOS/firmware is that?
     
  33. Meaker@Sager

    Meaker@Sager Company Representative

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    Its the 30M bios with the EC available from the MSI forums to prevent CPU throttling.

    Also the alienware modded adapter is working great :D

    Fastest result so far:

    http://www.3dmark.com/3dm11/5310863
     
  34. WhatsThePoint

    WhatsThePoint Notebook Virtuoso

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    In this neck of the woods they sell 2 piece power cord adapters.

    The long wire piece is chosen to fit the power brick cord and the small 90 degree piece is to fit the adapter hole in the notebook.

    Total cost is about $2.00~$2.50 US.

    DSC01930.JPG

    DSC01929.JPG
     
  35. 5482741

    5482741 5482741

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    Nice. The best I can do with the modded EC is:
    NVIDIA GeForce GTX 680M video card benchmark result - Intel Core i7-3920XM Processor Extreme Edition,Micro-Star International Co., Ltd. MS-16F3 score: P8308 3DMarks
     
  36. GrimMachine

    GrimMachine Notebook Enthusiast

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    @ Meaker

    Does the upgraded 240w power adaptor require a modified BIOS or EC to work?

    if so can I just use the xonar unlocked bios (mine is the GT780DXR)?
     
  37. Meaker@Sager

    Meaker@Sager Company Representative

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    It means it get used otherwise it throttles before that point.
     
  38. GrimMachine

    GrimMachine Notebook Enthusiast

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    Ok thanks for the info.

    Does the xonar ulocked bios allow the 240w power adaptor to work or do I need a different bios and EC?
     
  39. Meaker@Sager

    Meaker@Sager Company Representative

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    You need the unlocked EC or you will throttle as you hit 180W anyway, the unlocked bios lets you overclock the CPU.
     
  40. GrimMachine

    GrimMachine Notebook Enthusiast

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    Ah ok cheers
     
  41. wilson pickett

    wilson pickett Newbie

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    TECS
    this would be the super raid adapter wouldn't it?
     
  42. WhatsThePoint

    WhatsThePoint Notebook Virtuoso

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    Sure looks like the real deal.

    They only ship within Australia.

    Price seems a bit steep but I haven't seen any other place offering it as a part without it installed in an MSI notebook.

    It should work in any MSI with a 16F3/1762 motherboard or in a GX60.
     
  43. wilson pickett

    wilson pickett Newbie

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    i've been looking around for one,and this is the first time i've seen one anywhere.
    i have a 1762 with a 680m vid card.it has 2 6gb ssd's in it in raid 0.
    this setup benchmarks better than a single ssd,it doesn't seem it should,but does.
    i didn't realize at the time that one of the bays was sata 2.
    i put the mechanical hard drive in a $6 usb enclosure,and i use it both as a
    portable hard drive,and for storage.
    i doubt i would buy one of these,and 2 msata's for myself,but it may be
    something someone else would want to do.
     
  44. Meaker@Sager

    Meaker@Sager Company Representative

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    The two mSATA ports eat both the SATA III slots (or you only get a single 2.5" bay at gen3).
     
  45. WhatsThePoint

    WhatsThePoint Notebook Virtuoso

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    By adding a Super Raid adapter,there's an opportunity to have 4 independent internal drives each with an operating system if you add the 4th drive inside a caddy into the optical drive bay.

    The 2 mSATA SSDs in the adapter can be setup as an R0 array or as 2 individual SSDs.Only a single mSATA SSD in the adapter is also a possible configuration.

    In a GX60 there's the possibility of having 4 SATA III SSDs?

    Being able to buy the adapter separately means you can purchase a compatible model and put the mSATA SSDs of your choosing.

    With a Super Raid model you're stuck with the ones from MSI or you take a beating exchanging them.

    IMO,being able to buy the adapter is a Win Win albeit price.

    So this week we saw Maingear introduce a barebones 16F3 with Super Raid and now we see adapters sold separately.

    Will US resellers have the adapters to sell plus Whitebooks with Super Raid option?Can a US GT60 with Super Raid be at CES?
     
  46. mangos47

    mangos47 Notebook Consultant

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    Hi,

    I'm looking at either a 17" barebone with i7+GTX675m or MSI GX60 with A10-4600m+7970m. They are about the same price after factoring in the OS. The question is, which one will perform better in gaming? in particular for FPS games like Crysis2, BF3, and RTS like SC2, Anno, and also WoW.

    I've seen discussions regarding A10 bottleneck the 7970m for CPU intensive games. But will the combination perform better than the other way around combination - a better CPU and weaker GPU - for the above mentioned genre?

    another question is: how much gain will DDR3 1600 provide over DDR3 1333 in game? what about DDR3 1866? or is the money better off put in upgrading CPU/GPU?

    thanks!
     
  47. WhatsThePoint

    WhatsThePoint Notebook Virtuoso

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    The Kepler GTX675MX hasn't trickled down to the barebones whitebook models yet.It's a step up from the Fermi GTX675M.

    The i7 3630QM is the new stock CPU in the branded models.

    If DDR3-1600 is the stock memory then stick with it.

    The GX60 only has 2 memory slots so 2 x 8GB is max.

    If you can wait a bit and see what if anything new is introduced at CES 2013 that starts on January 7th in Las Vegas.
     
  48. mangos47

    mangos47 Notebook Consultant

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    thanks

    think I can wait a couple of days to see the CES new arrivals from MSI.
     
  49. stadler5

    stadler5 Notebook Guru

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    Operates the GTX675MX in a 16F3 Barbone.?
     
  50. BlackSabs

    BlackSabs Notebook Consultant

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    16gb max (2x8gb)
     
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